Significant earthquakes of 2009

December 17, 2009 Earthquake: Ito, Honshu, Japan

December 17, 2009 · M4.9

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck Ito, Honshu, Japan on December 17, 2009 at 23:45:36 UTC, 7 km below the surface.

Map

Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.

The earthquake

Date
December 17, 2009
Time
23:45:36 UTC
Place
Ito, Honshu, Japan
Magnitude
4.9 (mb)
Focal depth
7 km (4 mi)
Tsunami
None recorded
Epicenter
34.921° N, 139.261° E
Country
Japan

The toll

Injuries
7
Damage
Limited (under about $1 million)
Houses damaged
20 with its tsunami and other effects

Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.

What the record says

NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.

At least 7 people injured and 20 homes damaged in the Ito area. Felt at Ayase, Fujisawa, Mitaka, Shimoda, Yokohama and

Zushi. Recorded (5L JMA) in Shizuoka; (3 JMA) in

Kanagawa; (2 JMA) in Chiba, Tokyo and Yamanashi; (1

JMA) in Nagano and Saitama. Also recorded (2 JMA) on O-

shima and (1 JMA) on Miyake-jima, Nii-jima, Shikine-

jima and To-shima. (reference #1053)

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 2009The 2000sEvery quake the USGS located in 2009Recent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history

Sources

Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 8795.